August 15, 2013 — In addition to this week's NewsBreak(s), the editors have compiled the Weekly News Digest, featuring stories from the week just past that you should know about. Watch for additional coverage to appear in the next print issue of Information Today.

The J. Paul Getty Trustis making its digital images available to the masses. One of the aims of the Getty institution is to promote the visual arts to the public so they are easily understood and accessible. Now anyone who is interested in featuring Getty images in his or her work can use this designated online collection free of restrictions.

“[T]he Getty makes available, without charge, all available digital images to which the Getty holds all the rights or that are in the public domain to be used for any purpose,” Jim Cuno, Getty president and CEO, wrote on The Iris. This includes 4,600 high-resolution images from the J. Paul Getty Museum that show paintings, drawings, manuscripts, photographs, antiquities, sculptures, and other decorative arts.

Previously, users were required to submit an official request and payment to use the images. Under these new provisions, users are asked to fill out a questionnaire from the site so the Getty knows how its images are being used. But use of the images is free.

The Getty will eventually offer more images as open access (OA), according to Cuno, who wants to make the rest of the institution’s collections freely accessible. “The Getty’s collections are greatly in demand for publications, research and a variety of personal uses, and … they will be readily available on a global basis to anyone with Internet access,” says Timothy Potts, Getty museum director.

The Getty Research Institute is currently sifting through its collections to determine which should become the next OA option.